FIRST HALF: In The Flesh, Mother, Set The Controls For the Heart Of The Sun, Shine On You Crazy Diamond, Have A Cigar, Wish You Were Here, Southampton Dock, The Fletcher Memorial Home, Perfect Sense parts 1 and 2, Leaving Beirut, Sheep.
SECOND HALF: Dark Side of the Moon. ENCORE: The Happiest Days Of Our Lives, Another Brick In The Wall (Pt 2), Vera, Bring the Boys back Home, Comfortably Numb.

WARNING - SPOILERS AHEAD!

Do not read on if you don't want surprises to be spoilt, regarding what the band played!

Home, home again... With the arrival of Roger Waters and his band in Manchester, the tour returned to "home" soil.

With four shows on the mainland, and one show a quick jaunt across the water to Ireland, the shows are the final ones in Europe. Following these, the band head to the US and Canada to conclude what has turned out to be a very long tour, which started in mid-2006!

This show was the first of two to be professional filmed. However, the footage is officially just for Roger's own archives. Let's hope that it is of sufficient quality that he decides to release it on DVD one day.

Quick off the mark, the local newspaper posted their review almost as quickly as we posted our first review! Read their very positive comments over at the Manchester Evening News website...

CONCERT REVIEW - by BD contributer, John Johnstone

Just got back from the gig - awesome!

The group seem to be much tighter than last year, and the visuals are stunning (especially the pyramid - 'nuff said). The backdrop is the largest plasma screen that I have ever seen.

RW was clearly enjoying himself, playing up to the crowds. Highlights were just about everything, but special mention for STCFTHOTS (an eternal favourite), Sheep, ABITW and SOYCD.

CONCERT PICTURES - courtesy of BD contributer, Mark Jackson

CONCERT REVIEW - by BD contributer, Kevan Porter

I saw Roger's show at Manchester last night and what a show it was!

The set list is unchanged from earlier shows of this tour and similar to last years open air gigs but the big difference is the visuals. Building from last years shows, Roger has enhanced and added to the effects and movies, making the whole presentation of the first half of the show feel more like a 'concept' in it's own right.

From the long introduction to the show with the sights and sounds of an old radio playing, (occasionally a mysterious hand reaches up to take a sip from a glass of whiskey or re-tune the dial on the radio, all of this shown at enormous scale on the full width screen behind the stage) to the pyro used to great effect during the opening 'In the Flesh' and finally to the 'rain' of paper from the ceiling during closing number 'Sheep' with, of course, Roger's giant inflatable pig (which isn't shackled any more and can 'wander' the whole of the arena!), the whole show is very theatrical.

'Dark Side' was performed and presented beautifully... and faithfully. Again some of the filmed visuals have been carefully updated and incorporated with some of the classic 'Dark Side' films, so, for example, we still get the original animated clock faces and the slow walking feet moving aimlessly over Vauxhall bridge but we also get up to date political stock and plenty of 'trippy' new visuals! Moreover, the musicians on stage played magnificently, each part played to perfection. At the end, Roger beamed into the audience, clearly pleased and proud with the performance.

After band introductions we were treated to the final part of the show, completing the concept that started in the first half including a rousing and passionate rendition of 'Bring the Boys Back Home' and, of course, 'Comfortably Numb'. All in all one hell of a show.

The audience at Manchester were very into the whole show, making the atmosphere of the whole concert electrifying from beginning to end, everyone including the band, it seemed, thoroughly enjoying themselves.

My recommendation to you if you are fortunate to attend any of these shows is get there early. The 'show' really does start way before the band appear on stage, with the filmed backdrop and sound effects brought to life a good fifteen minutes prior to Roger and the band actually taking to the stage. It really does help to get into the whole vibe of the show if you can soak up all of that atmosphere at the beginning.

I had noticed during the show that there were far more video cameras operating than would be required for just the close up screens at the sides of the stage, so on the way out I stopped at the mixing desk and asked one of the technicians if the show had been recorded for DVD. In light of recent reports to the contrary, his response was a little encouraging. Apparently, both the Manchester and the Birmingham NEC shows are being recorded and filmed for a possible DVD release at some time in the future but nothing is certain at this time. Surprisingly though, the Earls Court shows are not being filmed. Well, we'll have to see!

CONCERT REVIEW - by BD contributer, Michael Brooks

After seeing Roger from the front row of Hype Park back in 2006, I was very excited to see how the show had developed from moving indoors with plenty of shows practice. Me and a friend waited in the rain by the stage door for one and a half hours with a group of other crazy fans on the off chance of meeting him. All we saw was a fleet of tinted-windowed cars race through the gate and straight into the arena without so much as a wave; but I suppose you can't have everything!

The gig was phenomenal from start to finish, the crowd were really enthusiastic and Roger appeared to be enjoying himself judging from the "you make me feel 20-years-old you lot do" comment at the end of the first half. Even 'Leaving Beirut' which fell kind of flat at Hyde Park, seemed to get as raptuous a response from the crowd as the old favourites.

On the subject of the lipsyncing that has been mentioned in other reviews - I am in no doubt there was some added depth to the vocal on 'Have a Cigar' and 'Fletcher Memorial Home', however, I'm convinced this was an innocent support vocal only and overall I was very impressed by the strength of Roger's voice throughout.

For a 17-year-old watching 'Dark Side of the Moon' - one of the undisputed best albums ever made - being played by the guy who put the pen to paper all those years ago is almost too overwhelming a thought to put into words so I shan't try! Although honourary mention must go to Graham Broad for the insane drumming on 'Time' - as brilliant as it was seeing Nick Mason at Hyde Park; Graham totally owned it and it was incredible to see the crowd whipped into a frenzy.

All in all, it was brilliant, an almost spiritual experience I and really hope he releases a DVD of this tour at some point soon.

CONCERT PICTURES - courtesy of BD contributer, Peter Robinson

CONCERT REVIEW - by BD contributer, William Palin

I was at the show in Manchester last night, absolutely amazing. The whole package was just fantastic, sound quality was the best I have ever heard, during sheep you just heard the sound of sheep and dogs coming at you from every direction.

The first set was brilliant with songs from many Floyd albums and also a couple from Amused to Death, the performance of Dark Side was just totally mind blowing you could just close your eyes and get carried away by the music. The light show and laser pyramid fantastic.

There aren’t enough words to describe the concert, I have been going to concerts for over 30 years and this has been the best by miles.

CONCERT REVIEW - by BD contributer, Rab Horne

Never went along to any Floyd or Waters gigs since the split but was tempted by this one at the MEN. Probably because the long awaited reunion tour is looking fairly unlikely.

Glad I did. It was a cracking show particularly the flawless Dark Side of the Moon second half. Carol Kenyon's vocal on the Great Gig in the Sky was immense. Roger was in fine form and clearly enthused over every note. I had the binocs with me in my upper tier seat and can't say I saw any trace of the alleged lip sync business?! Looked like 100% + effort was being made. Even although I am a big Gilmour fan I have to say that Dave Kilminster provided a very high standard throughout.

Well done Roger and the band - a great set which certainly raised the hairs on the back of my neck.

How about a date north of the border next time? Maybe this time with your old bandmates??

CONCERT REVIEW - by BD contributer, Pete Ward

I was at the MEN Arena gig last night - absolutely astounding. Extremely impressed with the band and the whole experience. The crowd really got going during the Dark Side of the Moon set, and Another Brick In The Wall and Comfortably Numb as the encores just finished off a great evening.

It was one of those concerts where you came away feeling that you has witnessed something really special. He won't be around for ever - go and see him now!

CONCERT REVIEW - by BD contributer, Dave Metcalfe

Just about got my brain cells back to normal from the sensory overload that was last nights gig in Manchester.

I saw this show twice last year in Verona and all I can say is that this years show, despite containing vitually the same setlist, is a completely different affair. Last nights show was simply stunning.

From the opening with an amazingly surreal display of hammers on the video screen to back In The Flesh to the closing notes of Comfortably Numb it was a night of unforgettable images and music.

The sounds were incredible and from where we were third row centre on the floor with that giant video screen it was real sensory overload at times.

I have been fortunate enough to see every band incarnation Roger has used since his departure from PF and this one is by far the strongest. Every player is great. However special mention has to go to Jon Carin, Graham Broad and Dave Kilminster. I was well aware of the brilliance of the first two from the In The Flesh tour and before. However Dave Kilminster was an unknown quantity to me. His playing is sublime and echoes (sorry!) Dave Gilmours playing virtually note for note. If you close your eyes you could almost believe...... No I won't even think that let alone say it!

The visuals in 2007 are about 50% different to 2006 and are all without exception improvements. The candles on Wish You Were Here which are then rained on by poppies as we segue into Southampton Dock are inspired.

All this said the star of the night is still of course Roger. He has never looked happier performing on stage ever than this tour. I hope that his love of touring again keeps him on the road as long a possible.

There are obviously a number of albums which could benefit from the complete airing treatment as currently being given to DSOTM. Personally I would love to see a show which contains IMHO his two masterworks, The Wall and The Final Cut. Now that would be a great night out!

As it is though this is about as much fun as anyone anywhere is going to have in a concert arena this year. If you are yet to see this show you are in for a total treat.

Oh I almost forgot. The pig is amazing. I have found my new on the road dream job. Pilot of a 30 foot inflatable radio controlled dirigible shaped like a pig!

Home piggie home!!

CONCERT PICTURES- courtesy of BD contributer, John Kinghorn

CONCERT REVIEW - by BD contributer, John McCormick

great show last nite 4 of us made the short trip from liverpool and it was like we never left it was full of scousers! hope roger plays liverpool next year for our capital of culture celebrations at our brand new arena at kings dock that would be great! highlight last nite had to be the second half was it just me or did they crank the volume up for dark side? if so glad they did because it just roared out of the quad system! great! anyway must get some sleep now see u next year rog! happy scouser

CONCERT REVIEW - by BD contributer, Matt Bailey

Last night's gig was the best I've ever been to. The band was AWESOME, faultless. Roger literally danced across the stage at times, he obviously was enjoying the gig.

DSOTM semed to take about 10 minutes! It started and finished so quickly!! Probably because we were having such a good time!

One thing that was massively impressive was the visuals used. Like a lot of us I'd seen clips on the internet, but you HAVE to see it live to really appreciate it. The films and pictures were very moving in places (SOYCD) and funny in others (Leaving Beirut), and made the whole concert fantastic.

Thank you Roger and band for one of the best nights of my life.

CONCERT REVIEW - by BD contributer, Rik Gray

I had the pleasure of being at the MEN 7th May show last night. As you can imaging, it was amazing. It was a lot less choreographed than previously (I was at KAOS and have seen Floyd a few times) or say a Floyd show which I felt gave him more time to enjoy himself. Lots of references to Barrett.

He interacted with the audience quiet a bit which was really nice. We had a zillion bubbles, floating spaceman, a pig where the ticker tape floated down like a snow storm. The ticker tape did it for me. Oh and the laser prism! Even Mr Waters said "thats good isn't it".

If you haven't got tickets, get tickets. If you have no plans to see this show, change your mind!

CONCERT REVIEW - by BD contributer, Simon Dixon

Definitely a gig of two half's. The first a retrospective view of most Floyd/solo work from the last 4 decades but nothing new from the last few years. No reference to Radio Kaos or PACOHH.....shame. Much improved light show but a shame about the lip sync on a number of songs... The band have jelled since Hyde Park and Dave K sounded like a different guitarist STCFTHOTS superb.

Nice 15 min break and straight into DSOTM. Classic. What more can be said. From "Breathe, breathe in the air" to "and the sun is eclipsed by the moon", there were tears of sadness and joy through the whole set. I have seen Floyd do this at Earls Court, parts of it solo by both RW and DG, lucky enough to go to Live 8 and the aforementioned Hyde Park with NM and it still seems so fresh. A few new touches and the train and F1 motorcar insert in On the Run made me wish I had been to the loo!! Yes, the pyramid is out of this world and the prism something else. GB did the greatest drum intro to Time I think I have seen and Jon Carin was outstanding as usual.

All in all a fantastic 'show', and that's what it was. Many more positives than negatives and more political snipes than one could cram into a party political night on election day. RW still seems a bitter man but on the night was happy and smiling more than I expected. However I did count at least 10 cameras so maybe that's why? Lowlight was the sync from all (8 rows from the front showed this up all too well) highlight was the 8 year old girl singing along to ABITW and knowing all the words. I hope she gets on the DVD if there is one. On a parting note, and I know it's an old chestnut, DSOTM is just not right being played apart.

CONCERT REVIEW - by BD contributer, Gill

I missed the Pulse Tour in '94 due to imminent child birth. My daughter is now forgiven! The concert was amazing! Roger Waters is one of the few artists that sound better live. The audience were well versed & could be heard alongside the band, we had pyrotechnics & explosions to start, psychedelia with "Set The Controls" & "Shine On", a big floating spaceman with "Perfect Sense" & huge floating pig with "Sheep".

The second half with Dark Side was amazing. There was a laser prism, which looked like it was suspended from the ceiling, which rotated, shining coloured laser panels, full of swirling smoke, around the arena & into the crowd. The songs from the album were tweaked, along with the films that accompanied them, with extended solos from Dave Kilminster & Snowy White & PP Arnold was excellent throughout!

The political message wasn't lost, with many references to George Bush & other world leaders, responsible for the wars since WW1. The audience rocked the arena at the end of the concert, demanding the Encore & we weren't disappointed! On our feet we accompanied the band through to the climax of "Comfortably Numb", it was truly awesome!

CONCERT REVIEW - by BD contributer, IB

A strange atmosphere fuelled by a combination of Man Utd winning the football Premiership and loads of bank holiday beer, it was unlike other RW concerts ive been to, it was more like a football game, with a few scuffles caused by people no doubt full of beer, insisting on standing and blocking other peoples views. I found it very distracting.

The musical content was good,the highlight of the first half was Leaving Beruit, my wife asked the question "Did Roger ever try to trace the couple?" I'm sure they cranked up the volume for the second half; where we were sitting the music sounded distorted (upper tier) but this was more than compensated for by the visual effects. The prism was amazing.

I enjoyed this concert, but I think RW needs to move on, he has produced music that is far superior to some of the Floyd stuff, and I think his next tour should concentrate on his solo years. In particular he should feature the Amused to Death album. The popularity of this tour should give him a good base to build on, I think he has probably won over quite a few sceptics among Floyd fans who`ve only known the Dave Gilmour version of Pink Floyd.

CONCERT REVIEW - by BD contributer, Mark James

Over 35 years I have been to countless gigs and this one just blew me away. There has been a lot of comment about some of the so called yobbery at this concert but I feel strongly that some people have forgotten what a great rock gig should be like. From the beginning it was clear that there was a charged atmosphere, something that I did not expect but all the more refreshing for it. Only a couple of weeks before I had seen Dylan play an excellent gig in Sheffield where the atmosphere was of reverence and all the worse for it.

Roger Waters in Manchester was different because a big chunk of the audience wanted to get involved, they sang, danced and by the end just screamed. Maybe it was the football, drink or the sheer anger of Waters anti war politics (it was May Day after all) but it all just coalesced to produce a fabulously visceral night.

Roger Waters? Dark Side of the Moon? Loud and angry? Who would have believed it? I have no doubt that the PA by the end of the concert had given up the ghost, it was distorting badly, particularly on the bass parts of Comfortably Numb. Who cares? Is it fanciful to suggest that a megabucks PA could not compete with 20,000 screaming northerners? I would like to think so!

There are legitimate concerns about out and out drunkenness and violence but surely they must be tempered by the realisation that rock at its best (and this was) is not just an intellectual pursuit but something you experience physically. In that sense it shares features with a great sporting event or political demonstration. Theatre or the movies generally in the west do not have that culture. Go to the Crucible or Stratford the experience is different. Shakespeare's Globe would have had the balling, yelling and heckling that went on at Manchester. Perhaps we need to rediscover that sense of dissent.

I do not know what Waters politics really are, outside of a general distrust of modern capitalism but I do sense that he shares with his relatively affluent audience a disquiet about the trajectory of modern life. The Manchester gig transcended that alienation to produce an Event. Almost, but not quite, a call to arms. Progressive Rock not punk?! No wonder some sensibilities were disturbed. It was great that such a corporate star could do this. We should remind ourselves that a lot of rock musicians have consistently failed to recognise the anger that has arisen politically in the last 10 years. The whole Bono/Geldorf caravan has ingratiated itself with the "dogs of war", fortunately Waters alongside Neil Young has not quite fallen into that nexus (Please think carefully about the earth summit concert Roger) though I recognise that the temptation of the Live8 gig proved too big. Meanwhile anti war sentiment is high and Waters found himself aligned with that.

I do wonder where this leaves Pink Floyd. For many the addition of the rest of the band would have been sublime but there ain't no such thing as a free lunch. There would have been gains adding Gilmour et al but how much of the anger in Manchester would have been tempered by massive corporate pressure and the rest of the band's, particularly Gilmour's, mellowness. It would have been a different gig but a better one? However there are possibilities that I find exciting. If his next album can transcend his bitterness and provide a vision that another world is possible, not just hint at hope, as his previous work has done but set out to re-enchant the world then Waters could astound his harshest critics. Where is he going to find the musicians to do this? I know where I would look,despite the pitfalls. How brave are you Roger and how brave are your audience?

Will I see such a fabulous gig again? I would like to think so but outside of the Pink Floyd/Roger Waters family I find little that can offer the combination of politics, anger, visuals and great music that we got in Manchester. A recently reformed Rage Against the Machine? Maybe.

A truly sublime gig. Something very special happened on that May Day night and I and thousands of others were lucky enough to be there. Lets not just leave it at that!